What did you do in the Apiary today?

[For want of a better word]

Kites keep away from our garden... big notice on power pole... no kite flying!
However we do have a Heron... who has cleared my lake!

Yeghes da

 

[snelgrove]

Checked 19 colonies marked and clipped all queens. Out of those 19 one was a drone layer, and another very week, with two dead mice on floor. Must have getting in after guards remove ed as fairly fresh.
On the whole quite pleased with strength, about 3 weeks ahead of last year here.
Colonies next to rape which is just starting to flower bringing nectar in

 

[Erichalfbee]

Two remaining colonies doing well.
Shook out the last lame one after removing the queen. No brood, 2 seams of bees.
Oh well..............
Perhaps I should open up a crowd funding site

The generosity of my fellow beekeepers knows no bounds and I'm looking forward to making up the losses.
Checked a colony at the association that had a test frame. Fewer bees than Sunday, no QCs. They should be shaken out as well but that decision is not up to me.

 

[Millet]

We've now got loads of kites since they spread from the Chilterns. Notice plenty of buzzards as well. It's a good sign - shows there is plenty of food about and the lower food chain is function well.
As for pheasants, not sure if they take or not chicks, but they have as much right as we do in killing pheasants - they do for food, we do for sport. Which one seems more justified? (And pheasants to eat for us are a by-product of the shooting, don't think otherwise)

I totally agree with you on that but what about the ground dwelling chicks of Lapwing / Curlew / Oyster Catcher / Moorhen / Coot / Ducks to name a few, if the red Kites where left to there own devices and let mother nature make its own rules up for natural selection then i would not give a toss, but setting up breeding plans to increase numbers is when the cack hits the fan and the same with Buzzards, just leave well alone i say and let them breed naturally, that way they will not be so many corpses laid around the countryside full of lead, the RSPB have a lot to answer for and the clowns are now setting a plan up to release the Great Bustard which eat Amphibians Frogs/ Toad's / Smooth Newts and the ever becoming more in dangered Great Crested Newt, why not just leave well alone.

 

[Millet]

Checked 19 colonies marked and clipped all queens. Out of those 19 one was a drone layer, and another very week, with two dead mice on floor. Must have getting in after guards remove ed as fairly fresh.
On the whole quite pleased with strength, about 3 weeks ahead of last year here.
Colonies next to rape which is just starting to flower bringing nectar in

This country sure is mad with its seasons, in North Yorkshire where i have been today the Rape is in full flower 50 mile further north and its just starting to bud.

 

[Swarm]

When do we leave well alone though? If we'd done this a while back there would still be Red Kites over London!
On a beekeeping theme, we'd not have Varroa.

 

[madasafish]

Added feed to two colonies prior to fresh outbreak of winter.

 

[Millet]

When do we leave well alone though? If we'd done this a while back there would still be Red Kites over London!
On a beekeeping theme, we'd not have Varroa.

When the balance is right BOP wise which it will have been before folk started to interfere, just like in Australia with the cane toads .

 

[MuswellMetro]

When do we leave well alone though? If we'd done this a while back there would still be Red Kites over London!
On a beekeeping theme, we'd not have Varroa.

Red kites have been seen over hyde park this spring and also over north London around Whetstone london N20 and also where i live http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/chat/f/906/t/45137.aspx

 

[Swarm]

Numbers getting close to what they used to be then. The balance will never be right unless the human race is eradicated.

 

[Obee1]

Went to do first full inspections on 5 colonies at my farm apiary.

Hive 1 - saw queen ( last years) all ok but only 3 brood frames. They are in single poly broodbox.

Hive 2 - single poly broodbox - are trying to supercede their queen. Saw four frames of brood. Some eggs - and 2 or 3 cells with jelly at top of frame. Couldn't see queen but she was an emergency one made last summer when my mean green colony had to be split into 3 and sent to live in the back of beyond - aka Caerphilly mountain.

Hive 3 - double wooden national. the third of the mean green split - is very busy. 7 frames of brood. Saw eggs but not a hope of finding the unmarked queen. Some drone brood built at bottom of upper box which all ripped apart when I pulled frames. Nasty bees from before I even cracked the crownboard they attacked me. Luckily I was expecting this and wore double Beesuit. This one is destined for requeening with a Bucky I have on order. Reversed brood boxes and added a super.

Hive 4 - double wooden brood - this one had all kinds of queen troubles last year and I was worried it was queenless. Saw 6 frames of brood and eggs. Bees were really awful and went on the attack. There was lots of space to lay. Reversed brood boxes and ran away for 15 minutes to lose the attackers.

Hive 5 - was my swarm I caught last year - and never requeened. Why didn't I do that? saw no brood last week so put a test frame in. Today the test frame has come up trumps. They are indeed queenless. I shook them out on a cloth in front of hive 1. At least I have now got some more drawn comb and food frames.

Also took a load of spare kit to the farm for storage. Long walk from bee mobile to hive site. Now absolutely knackered.

Ooh got one sting - to my thumb through my marigolds from hive 3. Not bad really considering how bad the bees were.
So that means 1 colony lost and one is requeening but I think it's probably a bit early for mating.
Tomorrow I look in my fave hive - the buckys in my garden. Really busy hive.

 

[Millet]

Numbers getting close to what they used to be then. The balance will never be right unless the human race is eradicated.

I nearly agree but eradication of the human race is a bit over the top when all we need to do is leave well alone, i love watching birds of all kinds the feathered type, but birds of prey should been seen rarely like the sparrow hawk or goshawk not in flock proportions that need feeding because they have wiped the area out of natural food.

 

[theeggman]

We've now got loads of kites since they spread from the Chilterns. Notice plenty of buzzards as well. It's a good sign - shows there is plenty of food about and the lower food chain is function well.
As for pheasants, not sure if they take or not chicks, but they have as much right as we do in killing pheasants - they do for food, we do for sport. Which one seems more justified? (And pheasants to eat for us are a by-product of the shooting, don't think otherwise)

We have hundreds of b***dy buzzards everywhere down here. When we kept 'free range layers' we would lose at least 2 a day to them. I think it's a bit like brock and protection has unforeseen results.

Tin Hat On.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I suppose if food ( your FR chickens) is freely available.
My hens and chicks are in woodland so buzzards leave them alone. The sparrowhawk helps himself from the bird feeders

 

[Hivemaker.]

We have hundreds of b***dy buzzards everywhere down here.

Hundreds around here as well..... strange thing to find, but several years ago while out ferreting we found a couple of dead buzzards and a tawny owl stuck quite a ways down a large rabbit hole, thought at the time they must of been going at quite a rate of knots to of ended up so far down the hole, no doubt in pursuit of young rabbits, unless of course the rabbits pulled them down into their holes.

 

[Millet]

We have hundreds of b***dy buzzards everywhere down here. When we kept 'free range layers' we would lose at least 2 a day to them. I think it's a bit like brock and protection has unforeseen results.

Tin Hat On.

No need for a tin hat with me, mass re introduction of a predator bird species that is not needed is only going to end in a bad way, as you are seeing and feeling the blunt end of it at the moment.
If Nuggets stop feeding the mass flocks of Birds of prey they will die of and let the natural cycle start again. ( Not you Erica by the way regarding feeding ) one breeding pair is fine.

 

[Millet]

Hundreds around here as well..... strange thing to find, but several years ago while out ferreting we found a couple of dead buzzards and a tawny owl stuck quite a ways down a large rabbit hole, thought at the time they must of been going at quite a rate of knots to of ended up so far down the hole, no doubt in pursuit of young rabbits, unless of course the rabbits pulled them down into their holes.

I have had a Harris Hawk dragged so far in a hole by a rabbit that i could do nothing about, the rabbit got away in the end and the Hawk waddled out, if the hawk can not turn around down below it is knackered.

 

[Brian Bush]

My Friend a local gamekeeper says he was able to live with the vast number of kites in our area. The kites did not appear to bother his pheasants and partridges. Then about 6 years ago buzzards began to appear in the vicinity. They had not been recorded here in living memory and the nearest established population was in Hampshire. On investigation he found out that buzzard eggs had been introduced into kite nests. The theory was that buzzards would kill prey and then kites would scavenge. The theory is correct. The buzzards kill everything that moves and the kites drive them away from the pheasants etc. and feed. The buzzards move on to their next kill.
The famous wildlife hospital situated nearby is also rumoured to have released ravens in the area.
Release of these top predators is having an effect on the smaller bird population.
I read in the Sunday paper that the RSPB wants to release eagle owls. I understand there are currently a couple of pairs in the UK.
Watching a programme some time ago about the spread of eagle owls in Holland I recall that they analysed their pellets and found that their prey were other owls mainly tawny. When will this madness stop???

 

[Millet]

My Friend a local gamekeeper says he was able to live with the vast number of kites in our area. The kites did not appear to bother his pheasants and partridges. Then about 6 years ago buzzards began to appear in the vicinity. They had not been recorded here in living memory and the nearest established population was in Hampshire. On investigation he found out that buzzard eggs had been introduced into kite nests. The theory was that buzzards would kill prey and then kites would scavenge. The theory is correct. The buzzards kill everything that moves and the kites drive them away from the pheasants etc. and feed. The buzzards move on to their next kill.
The famous wildlife hospital situated nearby is also rumoured to have released ravens in the area.
Release of these top predators is having an effect on the smaller bird population.
I read in the Sunday paper that the RSPB wants to release eagle owls. I understand there are currently a couple of pairs in the UK.
Watching a programme some time ago about the spread of eagle owls in Holland I recall that they analysed their pellets and found that their prey were other owls mainly tawny. When will this madness stop???

I do not for the life of me Know how you got so much rubbish information, you have been lied to or mislead on many things in that post.
I will however Stop posting now on this subject , No disrespect to you in any way shape or form by the way Brian

 

[Swarm]

Argument best split to a seperate thread really because it's bound to keep going.
All this talk of balance as if anyone here would actually know what that is or how to achieve it is just idealism. Labelling people 'Nuggets' for feeding raptors yet millions more 'Nuggets' feed their garden birds and making comparisons of introduced species like Cane Toads in a country where they had never been indigenous is just a stupid argument. As for leaving things alone and natural balance, it ain't going to happen. The next road they build, the next housing development, the next river flood defences, they will all impact some species or other, which will in turn have a knock on effect.